By Eli Sanders (NYT)

Published: December 28, 2004

The head of the state Republican Party, Chris Vance, sharply criticized ballot-counting procedures in King County, where a manual recount completed last week nudged the Democratic candidate for governor, Christine O. Gregoire, ahead of the Republican, Dino Rossi, by 130 votes. It was the third count in the close race, and the first time Ms. Gregoire had taken the lead. ''We have extreme concerns about the way King County conducted this election,'' Mr. Vance said, citing what the party claimed were illegally altered ballots and changing standards for evaluating voter intent. Bobbie Egan, a spokeswoman for King County Elections, responded, ''We have followed the letter of the law, and I think that's been proven many times.'' Eli Sanders (NYT)